TAG Restaurant Group owner Troy Guard speaks during BusinessDen’s “The Future of Downtown” event on Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023. (Alyson McClaran/Special to BusinessDen)
One of the three downtown Denver locations of lunch spot Bubu is set to close.
The location at 1423 Larimer St. in Larimer Square will close at the end of the month, restaurateur Troy Guard said Tuesday at BusinessDen’s “The Future of Downtown” event, presented by Brownstein.
Guard attributed the closure to renovations being undertaken by the block’s new owner, Asana Partners. The Charlotte, N.C.-based firm bought all the buildings on both sides of the 1400 block of Larimer for $92.5 million at the end of 2020.
Larimer Square was the inaugural location of Guard’s Bubu, opening in 2014. The concept caters to office workers, operating weekdays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and dishing up colorful, customizable bowls featuring a base of noodles, rice or salad and a protein like salmon, steak or tofu. They run from $11 to $17.
Asked about the impact of remote work, Guard said, “Our numbers are not back to 19 … but we’re still doing well there.”
The closure will leave Bubu with two locations, in Republic Plaza at 370 17th St. and Granite Tower at 1099 18th St.
The closure will also leave Guard without a restaurant in Larimer Square for the first time since 2009. He opened TAG — his very first restaurant, bearing his initials — that year at 1441 Larimer St. He closed TAG in May 2021.
Guard is expanding his restaurant presence elsewhere downtown, however. He said Tuesday that his wine and cocktail bar in the lobby of Republic Plaza should open in November. And a second location of brunch spot HashTAG, which already operates in Central Park, will open next year at 1125 17th St. It will have a 4,000-square-foot outdoor patio.
Guard said his sales at his downtown steakhouse Guard and Grace are up compared to before the pandemic, although lunches are slower and he no longer offers that service on Mondays and Fridays.
TAG Restaurant Group owner Troy Guard speaks during BusinessDen’s “The Future of Downtown” event on Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023. (Alyson McClaran/Special to BusinessDen)
One of the three downtown Denver locations of lunch spot Bubu is set to close.
The location at 1423 Larimer St. in Larimer Square will close at the end of the month, restaurateur Troy Guard said Tuesday at BusinessDen’s “The Future of Downtown” event, presented by Brownstein.
Guard attributed the closure to renovations being undertaken by the block’s new owner, Asana Partners. The Charlotte, N.C.-based firm bought all the buildings on both sides of the 1400 block of Larimer for $92.5 million at the end of 2020.
Larimer Square was the inaugural location of Guard’s Bubu, opening in 2014. The concept caters to office workers, operating weekdays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and dishing up colorful, customizable bowls featuring a base of noodles, rice or salad and a protein like salmon, steak or tofu. They run from $11 to $17.
Asked about the impact of remote work, Guard said, “Our numbers are not back to 19 … but we’re still doing well there.”
The closure will leave Bubu with two locations, in Republic Plaza at 370 17th St. and Granite Tower at 1099 18th St.
The closure will also leave Guard without a restaurant in Larimer Square for the first time since 2009. He opened TAG — his very first restaurant, bearing his initials — that year at 1441 Larimer St. He closed TAG in May 2021.
Guard is expanding his restaurant presence elsewhere downtown, however. He said Tuesday that his wine and cocktail bar in the lobby of Republic Plaza should open in November. And a second location of brunch spot HashTAG, which already operates in Central Park, will open next year at 1125 17th St. It will have a 4,000-square-foot outdoor patio.
Guard said his sales at his downtown steakhouse Guard and Grace are up compared to before the pandemic, although lunches are slower and he no longer offers that service on Mondays and Fridays.
